Brother’s Love Leads To Life Of Serving Others

Finding Missy Lampke’s heart for home care isn’t difficult. Just ask her about her brother and her eyes dance with sweet memories and sparkle with tears. Missy’s older brother Christopher taught her everything she needs to know about patience and understanding, skills that are invaluable to her as the marketing director for Guardian Home Care Services. Christopher has Down’s Syndrome and was most recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

Missy remembers Christopher being very protective of her during her growing-up years. He was patient, teaching her tasks like learning the alphabet. He was always interested, paying attention to his surroundings and understanding more than most people understood. She also remembers his giving attitude.

“He would give someone the shirt off of his back in the middle of winter if you asked for it,” Missy shared.

Christopher sowed this giving attitude and unconditional love into the heart of his little sister. As a result, Missy has dedicated her life to serving others.

“Having a brother with a disability helped me understand the need,” she expressed. “I love serving people, and I feel good about helping them.”

Missy’s career began in a health care organization as support staff float worker who would serve in about 10-15 different positions depending on where she was needed. She helped as a receptionist, with medical records, accounting, and patient care. After taking a break from her profession to spend time raising her children, Missy joined an organization that serves and supports people with disabilities. She also worked in a chiropractic office before taking her current job in August of 2015.

“Daryl, the founder of Guardian Home Care, talked to me about a dream he had,” Missy described. “I’m a curious cat, always willing to learn. With Guardian, it’s all about people. Working here has been different from my past jobs. We’re getting to know people and their needs and finding ways to get them the help they need.”

One of Missy’s most memorable clients was someone who had taken care of people her whole life. Missy loved hearing the stories shared and how this woman gave so freely of time and energy, serving as an example to her son because of her selflessness.

More recently, Guardian had a client who needed help relocating. Missy and Daryl personally helped the client get settled into a new place with a more optimal set-up and routine.

“We are not a chain or a franchise, and that means we can offer a different kind of home care,” Missy noted. “We’ve served as caregivers all of our lives and our job is not about the paycheck, it’s about the people. We have a heart and understanding for the people we serve.”

Missy is grateful to her brother for giving her this heart to serve. “The love I have for him is more than words can express.”